– Ted DiBiase tweeted over the weekend that he is currently battling a case of pneumonia. DiBiase is at his home in Mississippi and won’t be attending this week’s WWE RAW or SmackDown shows.
– Diamond Dallas Page will be appearing on Bubba The Love Sponge’s radio show this afternoon to discuss his yoga program.
– Several WWE Superstars have commented on Triple H and what he will say at tonight’s WWE RAW, including:
Chris Jericho: “Heard HHH future will be addressed on #Raw tonight. My advice to him is, it’s better to go out on your own terms…and go out swinging!”
The Miz: “Hey Milwaukee listen to @FM1021 right now. I’m on air bright and early getting ready for #Raw what will Triple H do? ”
Natalya: “Excited for Raw!!! But I’m really curious to see what Triple H is gonna say tomorrow. #gameover?:( “
– WWE has announced that Triple H will be returning to television on Monday’s RAW to address the WWE Universe following his loss to Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam. Expect to see Triple H sporting a cast to sell his “broken arm.”
– The preliminary buyrate for WWE Money in the Bank 2012 is around 200,000 buys, virtually even with last year.
– As reported Monday, Brodus Clay and Damien Sandow, who have been feuding on WWE programming in recent weeks, were scheduled to face off at SummerSlam but their match was nixed due to time constraints. Both the WWE Championship and WWE Tag Team Championship bouts were shortened due to time constraints because the production team wanted to make sure there would be enough time for the aftermath of the Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar bout since The Game’s farewell scene will play a vital role in storylines going forward.
According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, multi-platinum recording artist Kevin Rudolf’s performance of the pay-per-view theme song, “Don’t Give Up,” caused the program to have timing issues. Regarding the performance, some of the fans shown dancing were plants.
– WWE Intercontinental Champion The Miz is currently on a promotional tour in London, England. He will be off television two weeks while touring the country and apparently other countries. He noted via Twitter, “Follow my Tout for the next 2 weeks and you will follow me around the world. #MizAroundTheWorld.”
– Brock Lesnar, Triple H, Big Show, CM Punk and John Cena are featured on the cover of WWE’s 2012 SummerSlam DVD and Blu-ray release, which hits stores on September 18. To view the cover, click here.
Several WWE superstars and divas tweeted their reactions to the Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H match at Summerslam the news that Brock Lesnar “broke Triple H’s arm.” Here’s what the following people said about the situation:
Chris Jericho: #SummerSlam was amazing! Great match w @HEELZiggler and I proved my point! And if that was HHH last stand…what a way to go out! #truewarrior
Mark Henry: Triple h and Brock was very good I expected such a match.H is long from done gladiators die in the ring.That man is not dead by a long shot.
Cody Rhodes HHH would be just fine not getting paid long as he still was able to walk down the ramp…I feel the same, so I can’t imagine hanging it up.
Santino Marella I’m concern for HHH, back stage he looked . . . its hard to put in words but there seemed to be no wind in his sails, if that make sense
R-Truth: Big win for the tag team champs,,but I’m worried about HHH,,he’s really banged up bad,,not to mention a broken arm..
Vickie Guerrero: Triple H is built of steel, he will recover and face Brock once again!
Natalya: Can’t help but wonder what is going to happen to HHH after his loss to Brock at SummerSlam. Maybe it’s his last match as it was so intense.
– As previously reported, WWE Champion CM Punk will be at Thursday night’s WWE NXT taping at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. Jim Ross will also be on hand to call some of the action.
Because WWE are so far ahead in taping NXT shows, the next taping won’t take place until September 20th.
– “WWE” was the second most-searched item on Google on Sunday in the U.S. with about 100,000 searches. This is on par with how previous big WWE PPVs have performed and includes searches for “SummerSlam”, “WWE” and other WWE-related phrases (like wrestler names).
– On Monday afternoon, WWE announced that “Brock Lesnar broke Triple H’s arm” at SummerSlam. This is another indication that last night was not the last we’ve seen of this feud and WWE is likely building up to a Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H rematch.
– The WWEShop.com website has released new merchandise commemorating Sunday night’s WWE SummerSlam 2012 PPV.
– Ric Flair’s daughter Ashley, who is now billed as “Charlotte” at WWE developmental, has been doing ring announcing at WWE’s recent NXT live events.
– Following his victory over Triple H in the main event of WWE’s SummerSlam pay-per-view, Brock Lesnar is not expected to wrestle for WWE again until Survivor Series in November. Despite online reports that WWE burned through virtually all of Lesnar’s contracted appearances already, the latest is that Lesnar still has plenty of dates left on his contract and WWE won’t have a problem booking him in a few more feuds.
– Triple H got emotional after losing to Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam, telling the live crowd, “I’m sorry” as Michael Cole speculated whether we’ve seen the last of Triple H.
Fans of Triple H will be happy to know that Triple H has no plans to retire from in-ring competition and still has several matches left in him before he retires for good. Triple H will likely take several months off and is expected to wrestle again later this year.
– Brodus Clay and Damien Sandow, who have been feuding on WWE programming in recent weeks, were scheduled to face off at SummerSlam but their match was nixed due to time constraints.
Both the WWE Championship and WWE Tag Team Championship bouts were shortened due to time constraints because the production team wanted to make sure there would be enough time for the aftermath of the Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar bout since The Game’s farewell scene will play a vital role in storylines going forward.
– According to a fan account of WWE’s SummerSlam Axxess festivities in Los Angeles, California on Saturday, EMTs tended to numerous attendees who had fainted or collapsed at the event due to the extreme heat. There were few shaded areas and WWE did not provide water.
– Mike Tyson, who was on hand for the SummerSlam festivities to promote THQ’s upcoming WWE ’13 video game, was noted by a WWE talent as the happiest person at the events. The boxing great considers himself a huge wrestling fan, as he reveals in this article.
WWE.com is reporting that Triple H suffered a broken arm at the hands of Brock Lesnar at WWE SummerSlam. An article at WWE.com speculates that Triple H’s arm was broken by Lesnar’s Kimura lock and also states:
“It has also been released that The King of Kings broke his left arm in the same place that he did when Brock attacked him of the April 30 episode of Raw, an assault that lit the fuse on their tremendous rivalry. Although Triple H had initially refused medical attention last night, an examination this morning confirmed the severity of the injury.”
Lesnar and Paul Heyman will open tonight’s RAW at 8PM EST.
Primary names being discussed for the 2013 WWE Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on April 6 at Madison Square Garden are individuals with connections to the New York City area.
* Mick Foley, who hails from New York and was inspired to become a professional wrestler after watching “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka leap from the top of a steel cage in Madison Square Garden
* Kevin Nash, who defeated Bob Backlund in eight seconds at Madison Square Garden to win the WWF Championship.
* Bob Backlund, who declined an invitation to be enshrined in 2004 and headlined numerous events at Madison Square Garden in the 1970s and 1980s.
WWE officials have also discussed enshrining the late Randy Savage, although it is unknown as to whether his family, the Poffos, have been approached on the matter.
Triple H has taken a much greater role in coordinating the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and WrestleMania than he has in the past for the events. It was his decision to reach out to Bruno Sammartino in June and he personally handled site surveying for MetLife Stadium.
– During an interview that appears in the September issue of WWE Magazine, Triple H spoke about the burden that comes with holding the World Heavyweight title and how some wrestlers are not ready for the responsibility that comes with being champion. “I had a conversation with Sheamus, and he told me, ‘I want to be that guy.’ And I asked if he understood what that really means,” Hunter said.
– Despite Shawn Michaels’ recent involvement in the Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H SummerSlam storyline, Michaels still has no plans of wrestling again.
– After having the sympathy of the WWE locker room following his recent WWE release, Abraham Washington lost a lot of that support with his Tweets and his media interviews in the days that followed.
– Charlie Sheen is still expected to have some sort of role at SummerSlam. If he does appear at the show, it would be unusual that WWE did not advertise him advance to create some extra buzz (especially in the Los Angeles area) for the show.
– WWE Superstars, Divas and celebrities spread the ‘be a STAR’ anti-bullying message during the SummerSlam VIP Kick-Off Party at the Beverly Hills Hotel on Thursday. The party also celebrated a successful year of WWE and The Creative Coalition’s be a STAR Alliance; WWE has held more than 40 anti-bullying rallies, speaking to more than 25,000 children.
“I think for our Superstars to be able to go to kids today and say, ‘embrace those things that make you different, embrace those things that kids maybe pick on you for now, because those are the things that make you unique, they make you who you are and be proud of who you are,’” said WWE Chief Operating Officer and Superstar Triple H.
Through WWE and The Creative Coalition’s anti-bullying campaign, children are encouraged to “be a STAR: Show Tolerance And Respect.”
“If you are being bullied, there is a way out of it – go to an adult, go to a parent, go to a guardian, go to a teacher, go to somebody,” Triple H said. “Don’t let it just it just happen. Don’t just put up with it. Don’t think there’s no way to stop it. You can stop it. And if you know somebody who is being bullied, help them stop it.”
– HoyLosAngeles.com spoke to SmackDown ring announcer Lilian Garcia, who recalled her unconventional route to WWE in 1999.
Garcia, who had not watched wrestling since she was a child and was an aspiring musician in the New York City area, was contacted by her agent to audition for a television role with WWE. It was successful and she was soon offered a one-year contract to become the ring announcer of Raw. Garcia, however, would only commit to a two to three month trial run at first. After falling in love with WWE, she signed a one-year contract and “here I am, (thirteen) years later,” Garcia says.
After ten consecutive years on the road, Garcia parted ways with WWE in September 2009. She explains, “I did not want to start a marriage with me traveling everywhere.”
– Following up on the meeting that took place prior to Monday’s RAW, talent was told specifically that any hateful or racial comments would not be tolerated. The company stressed that WWE’s PG programming extends to how talent conducts themselves on social media. As for nobody speaking up when given the chance to vent their frustrations, it’s believed that anybody who does have legitimate concerns would be risking their job by saying anything.
– Prior to her WWE release, Kharma had developed a reputation of being lazy and company officials were losing faith that she would be able to get herself back into ring shape.
TMZ.com recently reported that Kharma is working with a team of professionals to help get her back into ring shape and is planning land a reality TV deal by shopping around footage of her journey.
– WWE employees who have worked closely with Triple H over the years believe that he will continue to focus on building up WWE’s fledgling tag team division, which will likely come at the expense of the Divas division. Triple H has never been a big fan of women’s wrestling and most of new talent WWE has been recruiting have been men.
– With WWE making a strong push to recruit new talent, the company has been putting a lot of focus on scouting college football players. As previously reported, WWE recently signed former NFL players Dean Muhtadi (former Green Bay Packer and Arizona Cardinal) and Brandon Carter (former New Orleans Saint).
– Actor Kris Kristofferson’s son Jody is currently working in WWE developmental with the ring name “Garrett Dylan”. He can be followed on Twitter @WWEGarrettDylan and his NXT profile can be viewed here.
– WWE’s upcoming Series 25 batch of action figures will include Randy Orton, The Miz, Big Show, David Otunga, Eve Torres and Brock Lesnar’s first action figure since he returned to WWE.
– Triple H is said to be a strong supporter of third-generation developmental talent Joe Hennig (Michael McGillicutty) and is pushing for him to be re-packaged soon.
McGillicutty’s grandfather, wrestling legend Larry “The Axe” Hennig, stated in a recent interview that Vince McMahon assured him that Joe would eventually use the Hennig name in WWE.
– WWE.com has announced that Kevin Rudolf will perform “Don’t Give Up,” SummerSlam 2012’s official theme song, live on pay-per-view this Sunday.
– SmackDown ring announcer Lilian Garcia talked exclusively to RedCarpetTips.com about her top red carpet and beauty tips. The WWE Diva says it takes a lot of work to look good.
“The first thing is the dress… then the day of, you know, just the curlers and the hair and the make-up,” Garcia says, also noting tanning. She says “It’s a process!”
– WWE.com has released a poll asking fans whether Shawn Michaels’ injury on Raw will affect Triple H’s chances of defeating Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam.
Deadline.com has announced a partnership between Warner Bros. Home Video and WWE Studios to co-produce a Scooby-Doo animated feature that will find Scooby and the gang solving a mystery at WrestleMania.
WWE Superstars Triple H, John Cena, Kane, The Miz, Brodus Clay, Santino Marella, Sin Cara, AJ Lee and chief Vince McMahon are slated to appear in animated format and provide voiceovers for the film.
WWE.com summarizes the film’s plot: “When Shaggy and Scooby win tickets to WrestleMania, the entire gang travels in the Mystery Machine to WWE City to attend the epic event. However, when a mysterious ghostly bear appears and threatens to ruin the show, Scooby, Shaggy, Velma, Daphne and Fred work with WWE Superstars to solve the case.”
Warner Bros Home Entertainment will distribute the film via Blu-ray, DVD, VOD and digital download while WWE will use its considerable resources to promote the title, said WWE Studios President Michael Luisi.
– After Shawn Michaels was loaded into an ambulance following the conclusion of Monday’s RAW, WWE.com caught up with Triple H, who said Shawn was taken to the hospital with a broken arm. Triple H said his fight with Brock Lesnar this Sunday at SummerSlam is now even more personal and the former UFC Heavyweight champion better show up to face what’s coming to him.
– Paul Heyman tweeted the following after RAW, taunting Shawn Michaels:
I hope @ShawnMichaels recovers from this very quickly. It's terrible he got taken out before @WWE#SummerSlam. But those are the breaks!
After WWE unceremoniously terminated A.W.’s contract Friday for what a company spokesman said was due to his continued use of offensive and inappropriate comments on live television and on social media after uttering a rape joke on the July 30 episode of Raw, the All World Promotions chief posted a barrage of vitriolic messages on Twitter blistering his former employer for what he perceives are double standards.
A.W. strongly feels it is unjust that he’s now out of job when Big Show made a similar remark referencing NBA player Kobe Bryant’s sexual assault case, Vince McMahon reneged WWE’s anti-bullying campaign two months ago on Raw by ridiculing Jim Ross’ facial paralysis, CM Punk told a fan on Twitter to kill himself, Triple H simulated mock sex with a mannequin in a casket, McMahon used a racial epithet on national television, and the company showcased a character making light of mentally challenged individuals, among other unsavory events. Fans comments he posted include: “VINCE MCMAHON CAN SAY THE “N” WORD ON NATIONAL T.V. BUT @AWPromotions CAN’T TELL A JOKE………….whats wrong with this picture???”
“McMahon is a hypocrite! It’s cool for him to mock JR’s Bells Palsy, & you aren’t cut any slack for one joke? #BeAStarVince.”
“I hope Vince hasn’t forgot How he mocked @JRsBBQ on #RAW live, and @AWPromotions gets released for one joke?”
“@if only you had strangled someone with your tie, you’d be back within 6 months lol.”
“so Dx can tell everyone to suck it but u can’t make a joke?”
“@CMPunk told one of his twitter followers to kill themselves. biggest double standard in the world.”
“@kane has sex with a dead girl but @AWPromotions makes a kobe joke and gets fired.”
“Vince can kick the leg out from under a one legged kid, wrestle women, mock The mentally retarded and he fired you!!!”
A.W. feels he is a casualty of Linda McMahon’s Republican pursuit of a United States Senate seat in Connecticut, which many have speculated has led the sports-entertainment organization to take action on any matter deemed controversial so as not to affect her campaign.
He tweeted to Linda, “Creates jobs my ass!! I’m fired thanks to you and your campaign.”
– WWE announced Friday via Twitter that Shawn Michaels will appear on Monday’s episode of Raw, the final episode before SummerSlam. Brock Lesnar issued a threatening warning to HBK on Monday’s show that he would see him before SummerSlam. Michaels will be in Triple H’s corner when he faces Lesnar at the pay-per-view event. Triple H is also advertised to appear at Raw, which will take place at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
– Former WWE Superstar Billy Gunn evaluated WWE developmental talent this week at Florida Championship Wrestling headquarters. Regarding this, Gunn wrote on Twitter, “Thanks to everyone in fcw for a great week of training had fun and learned alot the future is looking great if your a wrestling fan.” Gunn may further his partnership with WWE. As reported last week, management was impressed with Gunn and his interactions with Shawn Michaels on Raw 1,000 and the belief is he’ll receive at least one match on a future televised show.
– WWE.com has published photos from the SmackDown brand’s second night of action in Tokyo, Japan. John Laurinaitis, who competed on the show despite his removal from storylines, is not shown in any of the photos.
– WWE’s developmental system has improved dramatically since Triple H took over earlier this year. Vince McMahon is almost entirely “hands off” – giving Triple H the chance to carry out his own vision without everything being under Vince’s control.
– The new incarnation of WWE NXT is not airing on local television in Florida because the company feels it will lower the value of the show in the event that they eventually want to sell it as a national show or feature it on the WWE network.
The recent NXT tapings from Full Sail University have been running very smoothly with a strong emphasis on in-ring action. Triple H is not in charge of booking the shows, but he does have a lot of say over the brand’s direction, which is carried out by the producers/agents at NXT.
The official WWE website announced Monday that John Laurinaitis had resigned from his position as Senior Vice President of Talent Operations, effectively immediately. He will, however, remain with the company as a producer assisting talent with their matches. His resignation is legitimate and not part of any storyline.
According to WWE sources, Laurinaitis had mentioned how exhausted he was with his workload, which consisted of office duties in Stamford, Connecticut and traveling to numerous events as a performer. The writing, however, was on the wall since he was quietly removed from the WWE Corporate website’s index of Executive Officers in April. Paul Levesque, Executive Vice President of Talent and Live Events, was reportedly never a “Big Johnny” booster and it was believed to be a matter of time before Jane Geddes, Vice President of Talent Relations, and Canyon Ceman, Senior Director of Talent Development, understood the WWE machine. With each element they learned, they assumed duties that belonged to Laurinaitis. Creative writer Michael Hayes had already replaced John Laurinaitis as matchmaker of live events and it said that he was taken out of the loop concerning developmental program matters.
The internal belief is that Laurinaitis will wind up back on television as a performer since most people are surprised that WWE has maintained his character’s firing. He is scheduled to appear at live events through at least September.
Laurinaitis was hired as a producer after WWE’s acquisition of certain assets of World Championship Wrestling in March 2001. When Jim Ross desired to move from Stamford, Connecticut to Norman, Oklahoma, he began grooming Laurinaitis to overtake his position as Vice President of Talent Relations. WWE chief Vince McMahon, however, made the switch without informing Ross first in 2004. Laurinatis was at one point one of the most powerful employees in the organization, and in 2009, was promoted to Executive Vice President of Talent Relations. However, when Stephanie McMahon took over Talent Relations and handed over the reins to Levesque, his power weakened and he was ultimately demoted.
The only person remaining in the talent relations department since last year, aside from employees working in travel, is Mark Carrano. Though WWE stated in their article that Laurinaitis was “burned out” from the position, multiple sources have stated that recent changes to the corporate infrastructure represent Levesque assuming control of certain sectors of the organization and re-shaping them to his liking. Despite his demotion, Laurinaitis chose to maintain employment because he bought an expensive Connecticut home and his family doesn’t want to move away from the area.
– English wrestler Andre Tyson (a/k/a MVK Valkabious), who signed a developmental contract with WWE earlier this year and is awaiting to travel to Florida, was arrested in England over the weekend following a “bar-room bust-up.”
The Yorkshire Evening Post reports a scuffle broke out in one of the booths at the back of the bar and Tyson was asked to leave but resisted the security staff who tried to have him escorted. Police, who were already patrolling the street, arrested Tyson and another man.
Tyson admitted to assaulting the man following the incident and was given caution.
– The social media activity score for Raw dropped off significantly compared to last week’s milestone episode, according to Trendrr.tv. Raw scored 259,203, down 71% from last week’s record-high of 907,443. It was however, up from Raw on July 16, which scored 240,889.
Raw ranked No. 6 on cable television for the night.
– Triple H is today’s spotlighted Superstar on WWE.com.
The official WWE website announced Monday that effective immediately, John Laurinaitis is resigning from his position as Senior Vice President of Talent Operations after eight years of service. He will, however, remain with the company as a producer assisting talent with their matches. His resignation is legitimate and not part of any storyline.
In an indication that he was on his way out of the position, Laurinaitis was quietly removed from the WWE Corporate website’s index of Executive Officers in April.
Though WWE stated in their article that Laurinaitis was “burned out” from the position, multiple sources have stated that recent changes to the corporate infrastructure represent Paul Levesque, Executive Vice President of Talent and Live Events, assuming control of certain sectors of the company and re-shaping them to his liking.
Laurinaitis’ duties had been scaled back in recent years as Levesque and fellow executive Stephanie McMahon gained control over Talent Operations and creating line-ups for house shows. He had overseen the department since April 2004, when he replaced Jim Ross. He was hired as a producer after the sport entertainment organization’s acquisition of certain assets of World Championship Wrestling in March 2001.
Randy Orton’s 60-day suspension for his second violation of WWE’s Talent Wellness Program has ended—suspended effective May 30. He returns imminently as he is scheduled for Monday’s Raw in Cincinnati, Ohio and Tuesday’s SmackDown taping in Indianapolis, Indiana.
According to F4WOnline.com, his suspension stemmed from a positive drug test for elevated levels of testosterone. He reportedly told people that he took a tainted supplement containing the testosterone, causing him to fail, and acknowledged that he should have been more careful. WWE chief Vince McMahon was said to have been livid with Orton over the matter, particularly since he was so “outspokenly indifferent.”
Orton’s suspension caused a ripple effect on SmackDown as John Cena, Triple H, CM Punk and Daniel Bryan were shifted to several shows this summer to alleviate the brand’s lack of star power. Punk and Bryan will resume their feud at Raw live events beginning this weekend while Cena will cease making special appearances following SmackDown broadcasts in three weeks. Triple H will continue to make special appearances on SmackDown until further notice.